


Adulting is Hard

by KittyHowell



Series: Life is Kinda Hard [1]
Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Alive Hale Family, Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - College/University, Derek is a bit shy, Like a 5+ fic but also not, M/M, No Hale Fire, Stiles Too, okay kinda a lot, summaries are not my strong suit
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-03
Updated: 2017-07-03
Packaged: 2018-11-23 02:18:06
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 9,561
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11393313
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KittyHowell/pseuds/KittyHowell
Summary: Derek comes to college with absolutely no life experience for even the simplest of things - like laundry and cooking. It's all very ridiculous. What's more ridiculous is how often he calls upon Stiles Stilinski for help and the ever growing crush he has on him.





	Adulting is Hard

**Author's Note:**

> I made a prompt for this on Tumblr and it got more notes than I ever imagined so I decided to go ahead and write it. It's suppose to be a 5+ fic but its not, really. It's also my first Sterek fic, so I hope I did okay.

**Adulting is Hard**

  _This is ridiculous_.

Derek was a grown man. Nineteen totally counted as an adult. He just...he’s just not prepared, is all.

Derek stared down at his overflowing laundry basket that was tucked carefully between his computer desk and the closet door. He put it there so he wouldn’t have to look at it. Mocking him. How had he not thought of this before the semester started? How had his mother not? Well, probably because she hadn’t dealt with the laundry since before he was born.

At home, his parents employed a butler, two maids, a chef, and a gardener. Their staff had been around longer than he was and he actually missed them. Not just because of the work they did for him, but because they had become such staples in his life. He missed Marie’s cooking and her tales of her great grandmother, who was the one who taught her how to cook. He missed Eric, who taught him how to play baseball and told him it was okay to like other guys. At this very moment, he really missed the maids Liz and Beverly for more than just their personalities and love they always gave him.

Derek had absolutely no idea how to do laundry.

It was strange, honestly. At first he didn't even notice. Derek liked to think of himself as a pretty down to Earth guy despite all of his parent’s success and money. It just somehow escaped his notice that he’d never even touched a washing machine before. The maids had always taken care of it without Derek even noticing. He’d put his clothes in the hamper and the next time he saw them they would be cleaned and ironed in his closet. It wasn’t until he was completely out of clothes did he realize that maybe he should probably get on that.

He was so confident with it too. Thinking back on it, Derek is actually really embarrassed. He knew where the laundry room was because of the tour he’d taken before registering for his classes. He knew overall how doing laundry worked. He had walked past the laundry room hundreds of times while the maids were in there, so he figured it would be easy. He put on what looked like his cleanest outfit, febreezed himself down, and then took the laundry basket down to the laundry room.

Luckily there was no one there because Derek had put his clothes in and then realized he had no soap with him. It took laundry soap to actually do laundry, right? He was pretty sure it did. He figured he would just run it without it this one time and pick up soap the next time he went to the store. But then, Derek couldn’t figure out the knobs on the machine. They twisted around, sure! But what settings was he suppose to use? He still probably could have done it, but he was too worried about ruining all his clothes and someone seeing.

In the end, Derek just took his clothes back and pretended it all had never happened.

Which is how he’d been wearing dirty clothes for nearly a week and just run out of the second new pack of boxers he’s just boughten. A man can only rely on Febreze for so long before he needs to reconsider his life choices.

He thought of calling Laura first. She had just graduated so she had to have figured this laundry thing out at some point. Everytime he picked up the phone, he’d just set it back down. Asking Laura for help was hard and he didn’t want to risk her saying something to the rest of the family. Cora would have a field day.

That, of course, meant that he couldn’t call Liz or Beverly either.

Derek was not giving up. When he went to the store, he bought laundry detergent. They call it detergent, honestly, he had no idea. He also bought some dryer sheets. He had no idea what they were really for, but he saw a mom of four buying them and figured she knew far better than him.

Less confident than before, but not unconfident, Derek took his laundry and supplies down to the laundry room. He breathed a sigh of relief when he realized no one else was there. He was about to put his clothes in the washer when he looked back at the knobs.

Shit. He knew he forgot something.

What settings would be best?

He was just about to Google it when the door swung open and in walked another student. Derek actually had to bite the inside of his cheek to stop the blush that was probably making its way across his face because _of course_ it had to be an insanely hot guy. And not just any hot guy. It was _that_ hot guy.

Derek had seen him a couple times before walking around and had even thought to introduce himself once but never got the opportunity. He wasn’t sure what his name was, only that he seemed really popular and his friend Scott was dating one of his classmates in his required English class.

As he entered, he looked over at Derek and beamed. His smile was radiant but Derek couldn't look away from the caramel colored eyes that seemed to smile just as bright. He finally tore his eyes away, which was a mistake, because he looked down the rest of his body.

Great, now he was embarrassed _and_ horny.

Derek forced himself to look back at the machine. He debated whether or not to actually Google the laundry settings with Hot Guy there when he realized that Hot Guy was staring at him. The eyes shifted from him to the laundry and Derek suddenly felt the urge to hide under a rock.

“Uh, hi,” the guy took the three necessary steps over to Derek. He looked closer at the laundry he had still in the basket and then up at Derek. He was only an inch or two shorter than him, and standing so close he could smell his cologne. Derek started silently praying that Hot Guy couldn’t tell he was wearing two week old dirty clothes.

“Hi.”

“Has all your clothes here been washed before?”

“Wha-?” Derek caught himself at the last second and shook his head no.

Hot Guy nodded and then moved the dials on two of the machines and then opened up the washers in front of them. “For whites, you’ll want to use hot water. You have a lot of darks, and you can wash them in cold water. It saves energy too using the cold. Jeans are best in warm but can be done in any so no worries if you wanna wash them it all in cold. Oh, and, mixing colors and whites in general is okay, it won’t really ruin them if you do, but I suggest doing two separate loads because you said not everything has been washed and it's very common for colors to bleed the first time they’re washed.”

He finally paused in his talking, and Derek was so stunned he didn’t speak for a full minute. “Um, thank you.”

Hot Guy smiled happily and shrugged. “So whites can go here.” As he said this, he pulled one of Derek’s wife beaters out of the basket and set it in the first washer. “And everything else can go here.” He picked up the first color fabric he could. Derek bit his cheek again because Hot Guy was now holding a pair of his black boxers in his hands. He seemed to look over them a second before he smiled again and wiggled his eyebrows suggestively. “These can go here.” He tossed them in the second washer and then picked up the laundry detergent. “Fill the cap, here and here,” he indicated with his finger and then pointed to each washer, “then turn this dial to here and pull. That's it!”

He then walked back to his own space and started on his laundry. Derek did as instructed, trying to remember everything Hot Guy said and not the beautiful shape of his lips as he talked.

Hot Guy waited until he was done before speaking again. “It’ll take roughly 30 minutes. Then you’re gonna wanna move it to the dryer. Put in a dryer sheet and turn the dial here. That will take about an hour or so. Remember to put your name on your supplies because some people are thieves. My buddy Scott had some stuff stolen already. And yeah...I think that's about it. Oh, folding your clothes right after they get out of the dyer is best. Less wrinkles that way. And I’d just stay away from bleach. It’ll ruin your colored clothes, and lots of whites actually have tags that say ‘do not use bleach’. Crazy, right? I know. _OxiClean_ will work if you need it.”

Derek tried to be casual about it but his voice probably sounded as horse to Hot Guy as it did to him when he tried to talk again. He cleared his throat and smiled, “Thanks again.”

Hot Guy must have noticed because he smiled back. It was a nice, understanding smile. His eyes connected with Derek and he almost popped a boner right there. “You don’t have to be embarrassed. You do realize I’ve helped, like, ten other people with this, right? You’re not alone.”

He started to walk towards the door, and Derek panicked. “Hey, wait!”

Hot Guy turned around and flashed another smile. This one was almost shy looking.

“What is your name?”

“Stiles,” he said, and then laughed at the face Derek made. “It’s a nickname. How about yours?”

“Derek.”

“It was really nice meeting you, Derek. I’ll, uh, see you around, yeah?”

All he could think to do was nod, and then Stiles was gone. He stood there was another minute before remembering that he also was meant to leave.

When he came back to put his stuff in the dryer, he saw Stiles already walking down the hall in the opposite direction. He tried to come down sooner the next time, but he overshot it and ended up waiting 5 minutes before deciding to leave.

He tried to ignore how annoyed he was. Because that was also ridiculous.

 …

Derek really liked Taco Bell.

But God, he really hated Taco Bell right now.

A man can only eat so much. He never thought he’d see the day where he couldn’t even stand to look at a taco but here he was, 5lbs heavier with no knowledge of how to cook anything and a hate for what was once some of his favorite food.

He missed hard boiled eggs. And egg salad, a serious guilty pleasure of his.

How did eggs become hard boiled?

He thought to call Marie, but decided against it. She would absolutely tell Cora and he could not have that. He was once again seriously considering Googling how to make egg salad when he stopped and got gas and noticed the gas station had egg salad sandwiches wrapped up in a bag. He grabbed a couple of them, and they weren’t exactly the best but they weren’t bad either.

Until the next day when Derek was sick. The kind of sick that when you tell someone you’re sick and they assume you’ve been throwing up, you just automatically agree. Somehow throw up seems so much less embarrassing and gross than...this kind of sick.

So he needed to learn to make egg salad. And other things too because this was getting, well, ridiculous.

He’s about to Google it when he sees Stiles sitting alone in the common area. He had seen him in passing since the laundry lesson but other than a smile and a wave, they didn’t interact. Stiles always seemed to be with someone. It was either Scott, who Derek learned was his childhood best friend, or two girls Lydia and Allison. Allison was dating Scott and that left Derek wondering about Stiles relationship with Lydia.

Derek as embarrassed and really nervous and he so did not want to do this but at the same time he so did want to do this. Before he could lose his nerve, he walked up to Stiles. He cleared his threat, mostly because he knew his voice was going to come out like it had before and he really didn't want to do that again. It served a second purpose as Stiles turned at the noise.

His smile lit up his face and it made Derek smile just as big in return. “Hi,” he said stupidly.

“Hey, big guy!”

Derek rubbed the back of his neck nervously, “Hi,” he said again. “Um...I was wondering if you, well I was wondering if you knew anything about cooking?”

Stiles threw his head back and laughed. “Cafeteria food not doing it for you?”

Derek actually shuttered at the memory of the first time he ate there. It was worse than Taco Bell. “I don’t even know what that meat is. Do you?”

“Does anybody?” Stiles countered as he stood up. He started packing his stuff away.

“I didn’t meant to interrupt.”

“Oh, no! I wanted to be done. You are the perfect distraction, actually. Thanks for coming by. Are you free now?”

“...for?”

“Shopping and cooking lessons. This is way to much to just tell you.”

Derek nodded. He actually had a paper to write that was due in two days but he always had tomorrow to do it. He would much rather spend time with Stiles, even if that meant going shopping.  

Stiles wrapped his arm around Derek’s shoulders. The two started off in the direction of the parking lot when Scott came running up to them.

“Hey, man!” He yelled cheerfully, “we’re going paint balling. The rest of the gang is waiting. Let's go!”

Derek could see Allison, Lydia, and a guy he didn’t recognize standing by the doors, talking happily. His heart dropped a little, and he was certain Stiles was about to dump him.

“Sorry old buddy, old pal, old friend.” Stiles said as he tightened his hold on Derek. “Derek and I have already made plans. I’ll see you later.”

Scott looked at Derek like he was seeing him for the first time. “Oh, alright.” He sounded a bit disappointed but it was gone in the next sentence. “I’ll see you later, man.”

Stiles waved his goodbye and the two continued to head towards the parking lot. “Wanna take my car or yours?”

“Mine,” he said back instantly. He could see his from where they were and Stiles was helping him instead of going out with friends so he felt he should at least be the one using his gas. Stiles was still holding onto him, so Derek gently directed him in the direction of his Camaro.

When Stiles realized what car they were going to, he dropped his arm and stopped walking. “DUDE, this is YOUR car?!”

Derek suddenly felt a little uncomfortable. He expected Stiles to ask just how rich his family is, as the question usually came up sooner rather than later with new people. Instead, Stiles carefully looked over the car and nodded his approval. “This is a nice car. It's my father’s dream car. I hope I can buy him one one day.”

Derek waited a moment to see if Stiles wanted to say anything else but when he didn’t, he shook himself from his own head and unlocked the car door.

If Stiles noticed, he didn’t say anything.

 …

Derek was man enough to admit that he didn't think he’d ever been in a grocery store before and had absolutely no idea what he was doing. It seemed all self explanatory but so had doing the laundry.

When he mentioned as much to Stiles, the brunette had all but fell on the floor laughing. Derek stood in the middle of a health store with a bunch of people in active wear while his friend - friend? - laughed so hard he had tears coming out of his eyes.

“I’m serious.” Is all Derek said when he stopped, and it only made Stiles howl with laughter again. It was a contagious sound. Derek wanted to laugh too, simply because Stiles was. He loved the sound of it, the volume of it. He didn’t care that others were watching them. He just wanted to make Stiles laugh more.

When Stiles calmed down, he apologized. “It's just...weird. And funny. Man, I’m sorry. It's funny. My first job was in a grocery store but not one like this.”

Derek actually cracked a smile, imagining a younger Stiles wearing an apron and helping old ladies pick out fruit. Just like he was doing now for him, though minus the apron.

“We’re getting you an electric grill. A toaster. And a crockpot, too, if you wanna swing it.”

Derek could only nod.

“Okay, so do you like mushrooms?”

“Not really.”

“Zucchini?”

“Yeah, sure.”

“Awesomesauce! Zucchini noodles here we come. Um, spaghetti squash?”

 “Never had it.”

 “Alright, grabbing that.”

It took over an hour, but the two had made it through the entire store and Derek’s cart was filled with as much food as his mini fridge in his room could handle. It also had the electric grill, toaster, crockpot and a weird little device that apparently turned vegetables into noodles that Stiles had picked out for him.

They had spent much of their time talking about their food likes and dislikes, comparing dishes they’ve had and Stiles had filed everything in his memory so he could come up with some more recipes for Derek to try out.

As they were walking towards the checkout lane, something caught Stiles’ eye. He snatched it up quickly and dumped it into the cart with a smile. “You said you liked egg salad, right?”

“Guilty pleasure.”

“See, you are SO much better than me. My guilty pleasure is eating frozen Reese's in my underwear while watching crap TV.”

Derek snorted, then felt his jeans get a little tighter at the imagine.

“Well, boiling eggs needs a stove. But the store has these pre made ones done. Way better than the gas station. Stay away from those, by the way.”

“Noted.” No way he was going to tell him.

When they made it back to the dorm, Stiles was rambling on about his father and how he was worried about his health and eating habits. He told Derek about how he recruited several of the Deputies as spies to help him out, and was keeping tabs with all the local donut shops as well.

“I finally got him to actually like the taste of turkey bacon, too. It only took eight years. I hope he’s sticking with it.”

“I’m sure he is.”

Stiles nodded, “That’s what the spies tell me. You never know who’s a double agent, though. Or what he's sneaking in at home.”

When they walked back into Derek’s dorm room, he felt his face flush at the state that it was in. He hadn’t been planning on seeing Stiles today, or bringing him back into his room. Derek wasn’t necessarily a dirty person. His parents would have thrown a fit over one small thing out of place -and again, _maid_ \- but there were far more Taco Bell wrappers and clothes thrown about that was probably appropriate when having guests.

Stiles didn’t seem to take any notice and just started unpacking the bags they had gotten. He took one of the plastic bags and placed it into the empty small trash can that he had by his bed as a canliner. Derek took the opportunity to throw some of the Taco Bell away.

“Okay, so out of the recipes we talked about, what do you want to try right now? I’m going to write down all the directions for you for all of them, but we might as well have some hands on lessons, too.”

Derek’s brain instantly short circuited at the thought of “hands on” lessons with Stiles.

“Derek?” A light blush danced across Stiles's face.

“Oh, sorry.” He shook his head and chuckled lightly. “I never had spaghetti squash before. Do you like it?”

“Yes! You’re gonna love it. It's one of my favorites.”

Derek nodded. “There's enough for two, right?”

Stiles turned to him confused, then smiled. “You don’t have to feed me, big guy.”

“I want to. It's the least I could do. You don’t have to keep helping me.”

“Well, thanks,” he started. “Um, let’s get the supplies and I’ll show you how to make this.”

They gathered the supplies and set to work side by side. Derek didn’t have a roommate, so he had more room than the average classmate. Still, dorm rooms weren’t very big so even with all the extra room, they were still pressed up against each other the entire time.

Derek did his best to pay attention to everything Stiles said. He wasn’t entirely successful but he was pretty sure he could recreate the yellow noodles and sauce just as Stiles did.

The two sat down at opposite ends of Derek’s desk with their finished product. Stiles waited until Derek took his first bite before digging into his.

“This is pretty good,” Derek mentioned, hoping it sounded casual. He was feeling anything but. Stiles was in his room. Sitting right next to his bed. They were having dinner together. It almost felt like a date.

“I’m glad you like it!” He beamed and Derek blushed. There was a short pause and then Stiles cleared his threat. “So, while we’re getting close and all, why don’t you tell me about yourself?”

“What do you want to know?”

“Everything.”

“Well, uh...There’s not much to tell.” Derek couldn’t think of a single thing to tell Stiles that would interest him.

“What about your family?”

“My parents are lawyers. They have a firm together. I have two sisters…”

“Older or younger?”

“Both. Laura just graduated and is taking the bar. Cora is sixteen. She’s already studying for it.”

“Ah, so you’re pre law, huh?”

Derek shook his head no, rubbing the back of his next. “Pre Med, actually.”  

“Cool, man, me too!” Stiles reached out and gave him a high five. “How did your parents feel about your career choice?"

Derek gave a light shrug and Stiles seemed to get the message.

“Dad was hoping I’d go into law enforcement but he understood when I didn’t. I was pretty lucky. I really miss him, though.”

A comfortable silence fell over the two as they ate. Stiles looked like he was about to speak when his phone buzzed four times, then two more. He looked down at the text messages there and then rolled his eyes.

“Sorry, man. I gotta get going. Jackson is being a dick again and Lydia is crying. Allison is sending me on a grocery store run for ice cream because Scott has a paper due..” He paused then, “So do I but Allison has always liked Scott more than me.”

He put the phone back in his pocket, then looked Derek in the eye. “Thanks for the dinner. And I’ll write out the recipes for you tonight.”

“Um, yeah. Thank you for your help today. I appreciate it.”

“No problem.” He reached forward and grabbed a pen from Derek’s organizer. He took Derek’s hand in his and wrote down his number. “Text me. You know, if you need me for anything else.”

Derek couldn’t stop staring at it.

 …

And now there’s vomit on the floor.

Derek felt like shit. He didn’t think he’d ever been this sick before in his life. It was his own fault, really. He’d been eating the recipes that Stiles gave him for the last three days. He’d even made another trip to the store and Stiles had slipped him another recipe while walking past him in the common room. Derek had tried it that night, and absolutely loved it. But this morning he was in such a hurry that he stopped into the cafeteria to grab something quick.

So far, Boyd said six others were also sick.

He needed water but he couldn’t bring himself to get up in get it. There was vomit on his floor and he had absolutely no idea how to clean it up. Or clean in general. Derek had never even held a broom before.

As more time went on, Derek began to realize that he was not as prepared for the world as he thought he was.

Groaning, he reached for his phone and opened a message to Stiles. He’d thought about texting him before to ask if he wanted to just come over and hang out but he always lost his nerve at the last second. Stiles had said to text him if he needed anything, and he did. He also missed him.

**How do you clean up vomit?**

_You went to the cafeteria, didn’t you?_

**I admit to nothing but regret everything.**

_On my way._

Derek was too happy to think of himself as a burden or be embarrassed about not knowing how to clean vomit. He waited in a daze, feeling sicker by the second. The only thing that kept him awake was the thought of Stiles coming over.

It might have been minutes or maybe hours before there was a knock on the door. “Come in,” he croaked out, then swallowed the vomit that came up with it.

Ugh. Great, Derek hadn’t thought about how he looked.

Stiles gave him a sympathetic smile as he came in. He dropped a bunch of stuff by his desk and then came back to close the door. He thrust something in Derek’s hand, and he was surprised to see that it was Gatorade.

“You clean up vomit with Gatorade?”

Stiles tilted his head, then threw it back and laughed. Derek could see his long neck and it made his head spin. To distract himself, he sat up and took the drink. He chugged it down while watching Stiles go back to the massive bags he’d broughten.

“I made chicken noodle soup last night,” he said offhandedly as he pulled a large container out. “Scott also was one of you unfortunate souls who got sick.”

“Sorry to tear you away.”

“Allison is with him. I don't think he needs me.” He waggled his eyebrows and Derek laughed despite himself.

Stiles started to sprinkle baking soda on the vomit, then took a broom and dustpan and swept it up with ease. Derek watched in somewhat amazement as he did so. It wasn't like using a broom, cleaning, or anything else Stiles had helped him with was amazing in itself. While he wasn’t knowledgeable about things and never watched his parents do them either, he had watched his parent’s employees do them everyday. But seeing Stiles do them so flawlessly and so confidently, it amazed him. Stiles had been right. He’d noticed plenty of other students struggling with what was really just everyday tasks.

It made Derek wonder why Stiles seemed to know so much. While other students seemed to know a little, most didn’t know everything Stiles did. “How do you know how to do all this?” The question came out before he even realized he’d started speaking out loud. Stiles looked up and Derek could see a far away pain there. It made him ache deep in his chest and he wanted to say something. Before he could, Stiles looked back down and gave a shrug. A beat passed, and Derek thought too much time had gone by to say anything.

Stiles gave Derek his soup, which he happily wolfed down. As he did, Stiles took the time to actually clean up the room. He moved things, dusted around others, and used what he called a “swiffer” on the floor. “You don’t have to do that.” He kept saying, cheeks burning. Now he felt embarrassed. He felt useless. He felt like a kid.

“I want to,” Stiles said in return. He smiled when he was finished, then came and sat at the edge of Derek’s bed, just beaming at him. Derek finished his soup and threw the styrofoam container out in the trash can he’d moved by his bed before he got in.

Something was eating at him. He wasn’t really sure what it was. All he knew was he didn't want Stiles to go.

“You can stay,” he said, looking sheepish. “I was thinking of watching a movie.”

“Ooo, what kind of movie?”

“Um…”

Stiles saw the DVD sitting by the television and picked it up. “ _Pride and Prejudice_ , huh?”

“It's a classic.”

“That it is. You got any popcorn?”

“Organic.”

“Aw, I see you went shopping without me. Traitor.”

Derek snorted. He pointed to where the popcorn was and Stiles went to make it. He looked so comfortable walking around Derek’s room. He wondered if he was like this with everyone. Part of him wanted that to be true. There was just something free and light in the way Stiles moved that Derek loved. Another part of him wanted to be special.

He quickly moved over to make room for Stiles in the bed. If he thought about it too much, he would second guess himself. Stiles seemed to take the invitation for what it was, and even grabbed the extra blanket at the bottom of the bed to snuggle into.

Derek hoped his heart wasn't beating as loud as he thought it was.

He wasn’t sure how much of the movie he actually watched. He dozed in and out for a bit before finally falling asleep. When he woke up, the movie was over but Stiles was still in his bed, fast asleep.

Derek watched his face for a moment, then closed his eyes and slowly drifted back to sleep.

 …

Derek thought the next morning would be awkward. And it was, for a moment. He woke up just before Stiles. He thought about trying to maneuver out of the bed, but Stiles eyes opened a second later. Despite his best effort to _just say something_ all he could do was stare at him.

Stiles hair was sticking up in all directions. His eyes were dark with sleep still, and his shirt had fallen down to reveal his collarbone and part of his shoulder. Derek was in the middle of contemplating how appropriate it would be to just jump him there and trying to say something to ease some of the tension he was feeling when Stiles smiled at him.

His eyes lit up just a little as he did. He yawned and stretched, then wiped the sleep from his eyes. Derek instantly felt himself relax. Stiles had just woken up in another man’s bed and looked completely at home there. Derek wondered again if this was normal for him, or if he was special. He really _really_ hoped he was special.

“How are you feeling?”

Derek cleared his threat before speaking. “Better. Thank you.”

Stiles got up and brought him another Gatorade. As soon as he got out of the bed, he seemed to take all of the warmth with him. Derek wanted to wrap the blankets around himself but resisted the urge so not to draw Stiles' attention.

“Hey, you got that test in Professor Deaton’s class on Friday, right?”

“Ugh, I forgot all about that.” Derek moved to get out of the bed. The longer he sat there, the longer he ran the risk of feeling awkward again. His shirt was sticking to him with sweat so he pulled it off and threw it in the hamper. “Wait, how do you know about that?”

Stiles didn't say anything at first. He looked like he was looking intently at something, and Derek looked around to see what it was. A moment passed and Stiles shook his head slightly and gave a small, embarrassed chuckle. He then gave him an incredulous look. “Dude, we’re in the same class! You sit towards the front on the left side, right?” At Derek’s nod, Stiles contained. “I sit in the back. I sit, like, six rows behind you.”

The class was at 8am, so Derek really couldn’t say one way or another who was or wasn’t in the class with him. He remembered now that Stiles had said he was pre med. It made sense that they would have classes overlapping with each other. Now all he could do was hope he hadn’t done anything embarrassing that Stiles might have seen.

“Yeah, well. Anyway, I was wondering maybe if you wanted to study…”  Stiles trailed off, then cleared his throat. “...with me?”

“Yeah,” he blurted out, “um, yeah. Sounds great. Always good to have fresh eyes on a subject.” _Oh, my God. Stop talking._

“Feeling up to it now?

Thirty minutes later, the two were sitting on Derek’s now really clean floor - takes to Stiles showing him how to use a broom and a swiffer - while surrounded by all of their books, notes, and snacks. Derek was good at this and he actually enjoyed Organic Chemistry more than he probably should. Normally he might be a little embarrassed by it, but now Stiles was leaning over him while sucking on his pen cap. He was listening to every word Derek said, his eyes lighting up whenever he marked something down on his notes.

…

Derek missed hanging out with Erica and Boyd. His school load was enormous to begin with, and he was helping his sister Cora with Biology every other day on Skype. He’d gotten wrapped up in hanging out with Stiles as well. Ever since their impromptu study session, the two had spent the last two Thursday nights studying together. Stiles was certain he’d aced Deaton's test. He thanked Derek by giving him a hug right outside the classroom. He was lucky he had given it after the test and not before because the feel of Stiles against him had left him spinning. The feeling stayed with him for the rest of the day and had kept him up all night moaning Stiles’ name while he touched himself. He’d spent their whole workout day together at the gym feeling embarrassed and trying not to look at Stiles head on while he lifted his weights.

Everything, plus Erica and Boyd’s own busy schedules had kept them apart for two weeks. Derek had known Erica from high school. He met Boyd through their parents and instantly knew the two would make a good pair. He’d introduced them, and two days later they were together. It’d been over a year now and Derek actually felt a little pride whenever they kissed.

And disgust.

Sometimes, they _really_ got into it.

First they’d seen a movie and then had dinner together. It made Derek relax like he hadn’t in what felt like ages. Even though he loved spending time with Stiles, Derek felt he couldn’t completely relax around him. If he did, he might do something stupid like kiss him or tell him how he was feeling.

It was all very ridiculous.

“I don’t understand why you don’t just ask him out,” Erica said after she regained her composure. She had nearly fallen out of her seat laughing when he gained to courage to tell them how he was feeling.

“It’s complicated,” he said in return, feeling the tips of his ears burn.

Boyd raised an eyebrow and Derek rolled his eyes. Great, even he wasn’t convinced.

“How is it complicated?”

“Well...I don’t know if he likes guys for starters,” he shot back at the couple. “And even if he does, he might not like me. I don’t want to ruin the friendship.”

“Lame,” the blonde laughed out, “everyone says that! It’s _soooooo_ cliche, Der.”

Derek pretended not to pout. “It’s true. And not only that, but he’s constantly hanging around with that strawberry blonde girl. I think he likes her.”

“That’s Lydia, she’s dating Jackson _Douchemore.”_ Erica said at the same time Boyd shook his head no. “This is common knowledge. Why not just ask?”

Honestly it was because he was too afraid of the answer. Instead of saying this, he just shrugged. “And there’s this other kid sometimes around, too. Quite, kinda cute.”

“Isaac,” Erica supplied after just a second of thought. She pressed her lips together and shrugged. “As far as I know they are not together but I could see Isaac liking Stiles. He seems the type.”

Derek groaned.

“They were all friends in high school,” Boyd supplied casually. They could be talking about the weather, school, or anything else and his tone would always be the same. “They’ve just been close for years.”

“See, Derek? If Stiles wanted Isaac, he would have him.”

“That could just mean he’s interested in girls.”

“So what? You’re interested in girls. He can be interested in both. I mean, come on. Have you seen a girl?” she whipped her hair back, “We are pretty fuckable. But have you seen you? You’re pretty fuckable, too.” She paused, looking at Boyd. “But not as fuckable as you, baby.”

For a moment, Derek wondered how this had become his life. At some point a person is just forced to step back and think ‘this is my circus and these are my monkeys and oh God what am I doing with my life?’. He quickly flagged down the waitress and asked for the check. He knew what was coming and he wanted to be far away from it when it started.

The three parted ways outside the restaurant with hugs. Erica had driven herself and Boyd in her Porsche while Derek had taken his car. They took a left turn out of the parking lot, in the complete opposite direction of the school. He nearly made it back with just a couple blocks to go on the side streets when he heard a strange sound.

He pulled over to the side of the road and immediately saw his tire going flat before his eyes. Confused, he looked in the road and saw a plastic bag. He peered inside and groaned at the sight of a bunch of nails and broken glass. He wondered if someone had left it there on purpose. He opened his trunk and pulled out the jack he knew was there. He looked at it for a moment, then at the flat, then at the spare tire.

Yup. Fuck. He had no idea how to change a tire.

He kinda hated that his first thought is to call Stiles, but it is, and he does. He missed him already even though he’d just seen him the morning before.

_“Yo Der-Bear, what up?”_

Taken aback by the nickname, Derek stammered for a moment before pulling himself together. “H-hey, so I’m at the corner of Williams and Rose street like three blocks away from campus. I have a flat.” He really hoped Stiles would just understand and save him from having to admit it out loud.

_“You need help changing it?”_

“That would be nice.”

_“Williams and Rose, right? On my way.”_

Stiles was there in ten minutes because he decided not to bring the Jeep with him. Of course, it started to drizzle lightly at the halfway point and by the time he reached the Camaro, there was a decent downpour coming down.

“Well, FUCK.” His voice echoed around them, his white shirt sticking to his body and making Derek’s mouth water. He was already soaked, so Stiles must have been also. Without thinking, he opened the door and gently pushed Stiles in by the small of his back before jogging around to the driver’s side and getting back in.

They both stared silently out the windshield.

“I was not expecting this.”

He had rain droplets on his nose and Derek had to curl his fists together to stop himself from reaching out. “Me neither.”

“What happened?”

“What?”

“To the car.”

“Oh,” Derek had to think about it for a moment before he actually remembered. “There was a plastic bag of nails and glass in the middle of the road. Got my left tire pretty good.” He paused. “I, uh, I have all the stuff for it but I don’t really know what to do with it.”

“And you thought of me? How sweet.”

Derek must have looked guilty because Stiles started waving his hands around.

“No, sorry. Uh, I meant that. It’s sweet that you think of me. Yup. That’s what I meant. I mean, I really just stumble upon others who need help. You actually have faith in my abilities and reach out. It’s cool.”

Derek cleared his throat to try and ease some of the tension. “How do you know how to do all this stuff anyway?” It was more of a rhetorical question than anything else. Stiles seemed so put together and mature, so _adult_.

The sad look in his eye was back, and Derek was going to apologize for being such an ass because _fuck_ when Stiles cleared his throat and looked at him. He turned more towards him and Derek did the same.

“I was eight when my mom got diagnosed with cancer. She did really well at first. Treatments were fine, she was fine, we were all fine...But when I was about nine, she started slipping at home. Forgetting stuff, like folding laundry and making dinner. Then she started getting really tired and taking more naps. My dad tried to help and keep up with stuff but he was almost always busy with work so I started doing the household things myself. Just small things at first. Loading the washing machine and making sure dinner didn’t burn.”

Stiles paused, and this time Derek didn’t stop himself from reaching out to him. He grabbed his hand and swept his thumb over his knuckles in what he hoped was comforting.

“She died. About a week after I turned ten.” His voice cracked a bit, but he never waived. “Scott’s mom came by and helped for a while but her husband ran off and she was a nurse and was always busy herself. My dad tried but he only ever got busier as time went on. Even the Deputies tried but they could really only do so much. So, I learned. I had to.”

Derek didn’t say he was sorry. He was sure Stiles had heard enough of that. Instead, he squeezed his hand a little tighter and asked, “Is that why you choose medicine?”

“It’s hard losing a parent.” is all that was said in response.

They sat silently for a moment, both staring out the window at the downpour.

“Anyway, sorry.” Stiles had said, now looking embarrassed and pulling his hand away.

Derek felt a pang in his chest, a mixture of rejection and guilt. He didn’t like this. He didn’t like that Stiles was sad. That he was forced to grow up so quickly or that he now felt embarrassed for opening up to him. Derek didn't want that. He wanted Stiles to feel safe with him and be as open as he could allow himself to be.

He put his hands on the steering wheel to stop himself from doing something really stupid now like reaching out and hugging Stiles. He wanted to but didn’t want to make him any more uncomfortable.

“I’m really glad you told me.”

The rain started to let up and then finally stopped. Without another word, the two got out of the car and quickly went to work on the tire. Stiles showed him step by step on how to change the tire and helped him get the old one into the trunk.

Derek insisted on taking Stiles back to his dorm. Stiles tried to act normal, talking about the prank he and Scott had pulled on Jackson and Danny the other day. He wasn’t moving his arms around like usual and his smile didn’t reach his eyes. He wasn’t the bright and bold man that Derek had fallen in love with.

_Ho. Ly. Fuck._

“Do you want to come out with me tomorrow?” Derek said suddenly, refusing to look at Stiles as they walked to Stiles’ dorm room. “Are you free for the day?”

Stiles looked confused, “I am. Do...do you have something in mind?”

“I do.”

Stiles nodded, smiling. It reached his eyes. “Yeah, sounds good.”

“Good,” Derek said, smiling back just as big. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

Derek could feel Stiles watching him leave until he turned the corner.

…

Derek picked Stiles up at his door at exactly noon. He’d spent half the night wondering if this was a date or not, and the other half having vivid images of Stiles in bed with him. He was exhausted, horny, and more nervous than he’d ever been in his life. He hadn’t exactly meant to ask Stiles out on a date. It wasn’t really what he was thinking at the time, only that he wanted to make Stiles happy again. That didn't mean he was opposed to a date. The more time let on, the more he hoped it was.

“So where are we headed?”

“First.”

“Huh?”

“Where are we headed first,” Derek clarified, happy to see the look on Stiles’ face. “We have multiple stops to make.”

“I’m at your mercy,” Stiles said as he cozier up to Derek’s arm. He lead Stiles to his car, but didn’t open the door for him. That would have been top date-y and Derek still wasn’t sure where they were on that.

The drive to their first stop is pretty quick. It’s only twenty minutes on the highway. The entire time Stiles is bopping around to the music and sticking his head out the window. The wind is blowing his hair around and when he looked back and sang  “I love it when your body grinds on me” Derek nearly lost it.

Luckily they made it to the zoo in record time. As soon as it came into view, Stiles’ eyes got wide and his leg started to bounce. “Oh, my God. I have not been here in…” he got quiet then, and somehow Derek knew exactly what he was thinking. Then, Stiles squeezed his hand and with a big smile declared, “this is going to be awesome.”

Derek paid because he asked Stiles out here with him and that was final. The pout on Stiles’ face made him laugh, which only made him pout harder. “Where do you want to go first?”

It’s the magic words. Stiles grabs his hand and they’re off. Stiles acted happy and in love with every animal they saw from the birds to the seals and the wolves. He wanted to spend extra time in the exhibit with the spiders. Derek didn’t really understand; spiders actually kinda freaked him out but Stiles was happy so he was happy.

After traveling through most of the zoo, they stopped to get something to drink and sit on a bench.

“This was amazing.”

“I’m glad you enjoyed it.”

“Did you?” He sounded worried.

“Yeah, a lot.” Derek was forced to croak out. He looked into his amber eyes and completely lost his breath at how bright and pure they were.

“I haven’t been here since...well, before my mom.” As he said this, he curled a little closer to him and leaned his head on Derek’s shoulder as he pretended to look at the ducks swimming in the pond near by. “We never really did this stuff after she passed. I miss them.”

“We’ll have to make a list.”

“Of what?”

“All the things you miss. We can do them now.”

Stiles thought about it for a second, then grinned. “Haunted hay rides?”

“ _And_ haunted houses. Have to do both.”

“It's a date.”

Derek wanted to ask what he meant. Was it going to be a date? Was _this_ a date? Before he could, Stiles was up and tugging him along to look more closely at the ducks.

“What is your favorite animal,” Stiles asked.

Derek thought about it for a moment, “Wolves, probably.”

“Ooo, why is that?”

He shrugged. “Strong, protective, loyal to the pack.”

Stiles nodded like he understood. “Mine is a fox.”

“Did you know that foxes are more closely related to dogs than cats?” Derek wasn’t sure where that came from. But it came full force before he could stop himself. _Wow, smooth._

Stiles actually looked interested. “I didn’t know that.” He responded, tugging at Derek so they could keep walking. “So that means they’re related to wolves?”

“Yes,” Derek said lamely. He cringed, but Stiles smiled.

After traveling all around the zoo and taking a bunch of photos, the two headed back to the car.

“So where is stop number two?” Stiles wiggles his eyebrows. “Wait, how many stops are there?”

“Three.”

“Damn, I love it. So where are we going?”

“None of your business but it's only a couple minutes from here.”

“Fair enough.”

Stiles was too excited to bop along to the music. Derek actually kind of missed it, but he enjoyed Stiles squirming in his seat in excitement even more. He imaged what it would be like to have Stiles squirming for another reason but quickly shook the thought off. He really, _really_ didn't want to crash.

Derek could tell that Stiles had no idea where they were when they pulled up to the building. Derek remained quiet despite the looks Stiles was giving him. When they entered the building, they were met with music and an extremely energetic staff.

“Welcome to Sky High Trampoline Park! How long would you like to jump for?”

“An hour sounds good,” Derek responded, then turned to Stiles as the woman processed his card. “We’ll see how we feel after that?”

Stiles only nodded, looking around the building with wide eyes.

They got situated and headed out to the open area. There were a few other people around but farther off and out of the way.

“This. Is...AMAZING!” Stiles jumped onto the trampoline right in front of them. Derek watched him for a second before joining him. “This is insane!”

“I loved coming here as a kid, but I haven’t been back in a while. I think since Cora’s thirteenth birthday.”

“So this isn’t part of your normal ‘I’m super sexy Hale’ workout routine?”

Derek stopped jumping for a second, but resumed so not to draw attention to the blush on his face. Stiles only laughed and moved forward.

He absolutely loved the park. He didn’t want to get off the trampolines to try the foam zone but didn’t want to leave there when they finally did. His laugh was contagious and Derek was having more fun than he remembered ever having there.

Stiles tackled him into foam and they laughed while they laid there together.

“We’re running out of time,” Derek told him when they calmed down. He checked his watch. “We could buy more time, or go to place number three. Your choice.”

“Dude, that is so unfair,” Stiles exclaimed. “You won’t tell me where we’re going.”

Derek shook his head no, grinning.

“You look like the cat who ate the canary,” he said, grinning right back. “Let's go to place number three. I’m too excited not to.”

As they were headed out, Derek asked, “Are you hungry? We can eat now, or there. It's only fifteen minutes or so.”

“I’m at the point where I could eat if the opportunity presented itself, but I could also wait if need be.”

Derek nodded, deciding it was best to wait then. He didn't want to ruin the surprise but he also wanted to give Stiles the option. He said as much, and Stiles easily agreed.

“Dude, no way.”

“What?”

“I can see the ferris wheel , Der.”

“Oh, can you now? Who said we were going there?”

“Well, are we?”

“Obviously,” he said, rolling his eyes. Stiles slapped his arm and laughed.

“Yes! I love carnival corn dogs. Literally the best. My mouth is already watering.”

The fair was in full swing by the time they got there. It was huge with more rides than they could count and a ton of games. The live music was going to start in an hour, and they made a note to stop by and see if they were any good.

When they got their wristbands, Derek was feeling happy. Optimistic. Even relaxed. He’d caught so many small glimpses of Stiles. Ten minutes here, maybe an hour or two there. It was enough to make him fall for him. They’d spent the last five hours together and would probably spend another two or so hours there at least and Derek couldn’t help but think how it wasn’t enough time.

“Okay, so, ferris wheel first. And last. Warm up and cool down. Then corn dogs. Games with that, then rides.”

“Sounds perfect,” he said, and then blushed.

“Stiles! Derek! Hey!”

Both turned around and Derek felt like his heart fall into his stomach. Coming right at them was Stiles’ friends. Derek knew them all to an extent. He’d seen them around, and even hung out with all of them for ten minutes or so in the common room. He didn’t feel like he knew them enough to be prepared for this. _What if Stiles goes with them?_ The thought alone made him pout. The thought of all of them hanging out together made him feel even worse. He didn’t want to be an extra wheel. He wanted Stiles all to himself.

“Oh, hey guys!” Stiles greeted them with hugs and smiled. Derek nodded politely and tried not to look too much at Scott who was eyeing him up and down accusingly.

“Here with Derek?”

There was something about Allison’s tone that Derek couldn’t place. It somehow fit perfectly with the way Scott was staring at him. All Stiles did was nod.

“We were about to go on the ferris wheel.”

“Oh, cool! Us too! Wanna go all together?”

_There it is._

Derek prepared himself for it but instead, Stiles took Derek's arm in his and cozied up close to him like he did at the zoo. “Maybe later.”

He started to pull Derek off towards the ferris wheel and never let go of him. Scott had looked honestly confused but Stiles just kept going.   _Maybe...this is a date then?_

They waited in line until the wheel stopped and got into the pod. Derek sat first, and to his surprise, Stiles sat right next to him instead of across. He relaxed into it when Stiles smiled at him. They moved up slowly as the Ferris Wheel was being filled. Three pods behind them, Scott and Allison got in.

Finally, the wheel started to spin at a steady pace. It stopped a couple of times, letting people in different pods be at the top to look out over the fair and the area around them. When it was their turn, Stiles shivered.

“Oh, here.” He shrugged off his jacket and handed it over. He hadn’t realized Stiles had left his hoodie in the car.

“Are you sure,” Stiles asked but he was already slipping it on and seeping in the warmth. Derek only nodded. Stiles slipped closer to him and leaned in.

“Look! There’s Jackson,” Scott said from his pod, his voice carrying through the wind. “Let’s spit on him!”

Stiles rolled his eyes, but gave a quick look down.

“Why didn't you want to go with your friends?” It was driving him crazy. He had to know.

“Oh, my _fucking_ God. I hit Lydia! I’m so _dead.”_

This time he completely ignored Scott. “I’m here with you, Der.” They were silent for another minute before Stiles spoke again. “Derek, why did you do all this?”

Derek wanted to answer. He wanted to tell him how he felt, or at least kiss him. He wanted to express his feelings but he didn’t know how. Stiles had a way about him that took his words away. Derek felt it had been too long to speak so instead of saying anything, he just shrugged.

Vaguely, a string of curses from Lydia was heard on the ground. But they could only focus on each other.

Stiles smiled. It was sweet and knowing. He looked down at his hands a moment, and Derek could see the blush forming on his face. He leaned in and Derek didn’t believe what was happening until it was really happening.

Stiles’ lips were soft and warm. They seemed to molded perfectly to his and Derek allowed himself to completely melt into him. The kiss made his heart speed up and the hair on the back of his neck stick up straight. Before Stiles could pull away, he gently grabbed the back of his head and depended the kiss.

When they pulled apart, the wheel was moving again. Derek didn't tell him how he felt, but he thought maybe Stiles already knew. And Derek thought that maybe he felt the same. Derek kissed him again.

Adulting was hard, but Derek’s feelings for Stiles were easy. And when Stiles kissed him again, long fingers digging slightly into his shoulders, Derek knew he was never letting him go.

 

 

 

 

 

 


End file.
